Gauge



Oct. 1, 1940. v. GREGORY 2,216,615

GAUGE Filed May 14, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet l Qww V. GREGORY GAUGE Oct. 1, 1940.

Filed May 14, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR V/cfor Grego A Patented Oct. 1, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT. v OFFICE 2,216,615 GAUGE Victor Gregory, Martins Ferry, Ohio- Application May 14, 1938, Serial No. 207,986

'7 Claims.

. This invention relates to a gauge which, although it may be applied generally in the measurement of articles of various sorts, has been produced for and is herein disclosed as applied specifically to the gauging of the removable knives or cutter blades of. rotary or flying shears. ,qFlying shears usually comprise a pair of cooperatingcylinders or heads having their axes parallel and being mounted for rotation. Longitudinal slots in, the peripheries of the heads receive cutter blades or knives, the edges of the knives in the two heads cooperating on rotation thereof to effect a shearing out. For satisfactory shearing, the edges of the cooperating knives of aflying shear must approach each other very closely in their circular paths and must also overlap by a small amount. When the blades or knives are ground after a period of use, their width is decreased slightly so'that it becomes necessary to dispose shims in the bottoms of the slots in the heads to maintain the blades in proper cooperative relation.

It has been the practice heretofore, after grinding the blades, to secure them in place with shims estimated to be of the proper thickness to give the desired relative positions of the blades. If the estimate proved on trial to have been an error, a-second trial was made with a. shim of diiferent thickness. This operation is obviously a tedious and time consuming one and is particularly objecrtionable because it keeps the shear out of service forprolonged intervals.

I have invented a gauge particularly adapted for the determination ofthe amount of shimming up required by a shear blade after grinding thereof to insure proper cooperation of the cutting edges. The invention is also applicable generally to the gauging of various articles but will be described herein with reference to the specific application for which'it was produced.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings to which reference is'made in the following detailed description, during the course of which other novel features and advantages of the invention will be pointed out. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the gauge of myinvention;

;Fig. 2 is a side elevation;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line III-'III of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line omitted; and

- Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken along the line V-V of Fig. 2. s

, Referring in detail to the drawings, the gaug of my invention comprises generally a box or housing ill which is generally rectangular in 5 section and hollow as shown in Fig. 5. The top wall of the housing is recessed as at H. An abutment I2 is secured to one end of the housing by screws I3. A gauge block I4 is slidable in thehousing Ill and has an integral abutment Hi extending upwardly through the recess H. The block [4 is held in place in the housing ID by a removable cover plate Ma secured to the housing by screws [41). A transverse cylindrical bearing member l6 extends through a suitable bore in '15 the abutment, l5 and. is held in position by a set screw I'l.

An adjusting screw [8 is journaled in a bore through the abutment l2 and is threaded into a suitably tapped bore l9 in the block I4. The screw [8 has an annular, groove 20 and a pin 2| threaded through the abutment l2 cooperating therewith to hold the screw against axial movement relative to the abutment.

A thrust bearing 22 is disposed between the V abutment l2 and a shoulder 23 formed on the screw l8. A clutch member 24 in the form of a conical frustum is also formed integral with the screw l8. The clutch member 24 cooperates with an external member 25 having a lining of suitable frictional material 26 therein. The member 25 is journaled on the screw as at 2'1 and is provided with a hand-wheel 28 secured thereto by screws29. The clutch member 25 and handwheel 28 are secured on the screw by nuts 30 threaded on a reduced end portion on the screw indicated at 3|, and a washer 32 engaging the end of the member 25 opposite that which cooperates with-the member 24. A fiber washer 33 is interposed between the washer 32 and clutch member 24.

I also providea clutch whereby the screw l8 may be positively driven from the hand-wheel 28 to move the abutment l5 away from. the abutment l2. This clutch is of the so-called freewheeling type and is eifective to turn the screw l8 in onedirection only. It comprises wedging surfaces 34 formed on the screw between the threaded end 3| thereof and the portion 21 on which the clutch member 24 is journaled, and pins 35. It will be apparent that, on counterclockwise rotation of the hand-wheel 28 as viewed in Fig. 4, the pins 35 will be wedged between the surfaces 34 and the axial bore through the member 25 whereby the screw will be positively driven.

The direction of the threads on the screw I8 and in the bore [9 is such as to cause outward movement of the block I l on such rotation of the hand-wheel.

A plunger and dial indicator 36 is fixed on the housing H) by any convenient means in such position that its plunger 31 engages the abutment l5. As shown, the plunger may be received in a bore 38 extending inwardly of the abutment.

In using the gauge for determining the amount of shimming up required by a shear blade after grinding of the latter, I preferably provide a standard block insertible between the abutments l2 and [5, the length of which is determined by the original width of the cutter blade or knife. The movable abutment I is drawn against the standard block by turning the handwheel 28. Slippage of the friction clutch composed of the members 24 and 25 will occur when the abutment l5 exerts a predetermined pressure on the standard block. The bearing 22 withstands the thrust imposed on the screw I8 as the abutment l5 approaches and tightens up on the standard block. When the abutment 15 has been tightened up on the block sufficiently to cause slippage of the friction clutch 24 and 25, the indicator 36 is read. The hand-wheel 28 is then reversed and positively drives the screw I8 through the frictional clutch 34 and 35 to back the abutment off from the standard block. The gauge is next applied to the reground shear knife or cutter blade indicated in dotted lines at 39 with backing shims 40 to take up the space occupied by the original material which has been removed in regrinding. The handwheel 28 is again turned to drive the screw 18 through the clutch 24 and 25 and move the abutment l5 against the blade 39 and cause it to press the shims 40 against the abutment I 2. By reading the indicator 36 after slippage of the clutch 2425, the precise deficiency or excess of the total thickness of the shims may be noted at once and appropriate correction in the amount of shimming made. In this manner, the gauge of my invention makes it possible to determine rapidly the exact amount of shimming required by a shear blade to maintain its reground edge in proper position for accurate overlap relative to the cooperating blade.

It will be apparent that the invention is a highly useful device in connection with the operation and maintenance of flying shears. It is also applicable generally to the gauging of various parts. By its use, the tedious and repeated insertion and removal of shear knives which was necessary heretofore to obtain proper operating relation of the knives is avoided and the desired setting of the blades may be accomplished in a very short time. This reduction in lost operating time directly affects the production obtainable from a rotary shear.

The friction clutch 24, 25 limits the pressure exerted by the bearing member l6, since the clutch slips on meeting a predetermined resistance. A constant gauging pressure is thus assured. At the same time, the free-wheeling clutch 34, 35 provides a positive drive for the screw l8 to enable the user to back off the abutment [5 and bearing member IS, without afiecting the tightening of the latter on gauging. This is accomplished solely through the clutch 24, 25, as the clutch 34, 35 drives in one direction only, i. e., the backing off or reverse direction of the screw [8.

Although I have illustrated and described but a preferred form of the invention, it will be evident that changes in the construction and arrangement disclosed may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A gauge comprising a relatively fixed member, a movable member slidable thereon, abut- ,ments on said members adapted to receive between them a part to be gauged, rotary means for causing movement of said movable member, means for turning said rotary means, a friction clutch connecting said turning means to said rotary means, and a second clutch also connecting said turning means to said rotary means, said second clutch being effective to cause rota.- tion of said rotary means in only one direction.

2. A gauge comprising a gauge box or housing, a gauge block slidable ther'ealong, abutments on said block and housing between which a part to be gauged may be received, a screw for adjusting said block along said housing, manually operable means for turning said screw, a friction clutch through which said means drives said screw, and a second, unidirectionally effective clutch between the screw and said means, whereby said means positively drives said screw in one direction only.

3. In a gauge, a pair of members one of which is movable relative to the other, a screw for adjusting the movable member, and means including a friction clutch for driving said screw to close said members on a part to be gauged and a second clutch efiective to drive said screw only in the direction which causes the movable member to back 01f from the other member.

4. A gauge as defined by claim 2, characterized by the abutment on one of said members having a transverse cylindrical bearing member therein adapted to engage a beveled portion of said part at a point spaced from one side thereof.

5. A caliper gauge comprising a relatively fixed member, a member mounted for movement on the fixed member, a screw for actuating the movable member, and a drive for said screw including a slip clutch whereby said movable member may be drawn up against a part to be gauged with a constant force, said drive also including a second clutch effective to drive said screw in a backing-off direction but ineffective to drive it in the opposite direction.

6. A gauge as defined by claim 5 characterized by a manually operable driving member for both said clutches.

7. A gauge comprising a housing, a member movably carried therein, a screw for actuating to the knob in such direction as to back off said member.

VICTOR GREGORY. 

